1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus and method for performing appropriate processing in accordance with whether or not a user is present.
2. Related Background Art
A phenomenon afflicting display devices at the first stage is the screen burn-in that occurs when the same picture is continuously displayed for an extended period of time.
Therefore, screen-saver software had been developed that, when because of a user""s absence there has been no change in screen activity for a specific period of time, assumes control of a display screen and either turns off the display or uses a stored program to project constantly changing images onto the screen.
The time that must elapse before screen-saver software is activated can be set. In addition the type of screen to be displayed when the software is activated can be designated. When these setups are completed and no operation is performed by a user within the set time period, the designated screen is displayed and screen burn-in can be prevented.
When a portable, battery-operated information processing apparatus, such as a notebook-sized PC, is not in use it is preferable that it be turned off. However, thereafter, when the apparatus is turned on again, to recover to the previous operating state a user must repeat the processes previously performed to acquire that state, and this deteriorates usability considerably.
Current notebook-sized PCs, therefore, have resume functions that, when the apparatuses are powered on again, recover to the working state that existed before the apparatuses were turned off.
When a user turns off the power during an operation while the resume function is working, the current work condition is stored and the supply of power is halted. Later, when the user turns on the apparatus again, the work condition that existed when the apparatus was powered off is recovered.
In the conventional technique, the screen-saver software is the original and only program used for protecting the screen. Thus, the screen-saver software can display a protective screen while a user is absent that differs from the normal operating screen. However, when a user is present but does not perform any operation for a specific period of time, the screen-saver software will also switch the screen to the protective screen.
In other words, the screen saving software can not ascertain whether a user is absent or whether the user is present but has not performed any operation for a specific period of time, and in either case, the same process is performed.
That is, in the prior art, whether a user is present or not can not be ascertained, and an appropriate process can not be performed in consonance with the presence/absence of the user.
The above described function for recovering the work condition is required not only for a single information processing apparatus, but also for multiple apparatuses when, for example, developers who work both at office and in their laboratories, salesmen who work both in and outside their offices, or other company employees who work both in offices and at home employ information processing apparatuses at their current locations to resume jobs that were being processed by other information processing apparatuses at different locations. However, in such cases because the apparatuses differ, the users must repeat the preparatory operations performed with the previous apparatuses in order to recover their preceding work conditions.
In short, a work state existing on one specific information processing apparatus that is interrupted can not automatically be recovered to when using another information processing apparatus.
It is, therefore, one objective of the present invention to perform appropriate processing in accordance with the presence/absence of a user and to improve the usability for the user.
It is another objective of the present invention to enable recovery to a work condition at a plurality of information processing apparatuses so as to enhance usability for a user.
According to one aspect, the present invention, which achieves these objectives, relates to an information processing apparatus comprising:
presence determination means for determining whether a user is present;
process decision means for employing the result obtained by the presence determination means to decide what process is to be performed; and
processing means for performing the process selected by the process decision means.
According to another aspect, the present invention, which achieves these objectives, relates to an information processing apparatus comprising:
presence information acquisition means for acquiring from another apparatus presence information concerning a user;
identification means for identifying an apparatus that corresponds to the presence information obtained by the presence information acquisition means; and
notification means for, based on the apparatus identified by the identification means, transmitting identity of a location at which the user is present.
According to an additional aspect, the present invention, which achieves these objectives, relates to an information processing apparatus, which is capable of communicating with a different information processing apparatus, comprising:
interrupted process information acquisition means for acquiring information concerning a process that a user has interrupted at a different apparatus; and
process resumption means for employing the information obtained by the interrupted process information acquisition means to resume the process that has been interrupted at the different information apparatus.
According to a further aspect, the present invention, which achieves these objectives, relates to an information processing method comprising:
a presence determination step of determining whether a user is present;
a process decision step of employing the result obtained at the presence determination step to decide what process is to be performed; and
a processing step of performing the process selected at the process decision step.
According to still another aspect, the present invention, which achieves these objectives, relates to an information processing method comprising:
a presence information acquisition step of acquiring from another apparatus presence information concerning a user;
an identification step of identifying an apparatus that corresponds to the presence information obtained at the presence information acquisition step; and
a notification step of, based on the apparatus identified at the identification step, transmitting identity of a location at which the user is present.
According to a still additional aspect, the present invention, which achieves these objectives, relates to an information processing method comprising:
an interrupted process information acquisition step of acquiring information concerning a process that a user has interrupted at a different apparatus; and
a process resumption step of employing the information obtained at the interrupted process information acquisition step to resume the process that has been interrupted at the different information apparatus.
According to a still further aspect, the present invention, which achieves these objectives, relates to a computer-readable storage medium in which is stored a program for controlling a computer, the program comprising codes for permitting the computer to perform:
a presence determination step of determining whether a user is present;
a process decision step of employing the result obtained at the presence determination step to decide what process is to be performed; and
a processing step of performing the process selected at the process decision step.
According to yet another aspect, the present invention, which achieves these objectives, relates to a computer-readable storage medium in which is stored a program for controlling a computer, the program comprising codes for permitting the computer to perform:
a presence information acquisition step of acquiring from another apparatus presence information concerning a user;
an identification step of identifying an apparatus that corresponds to the presence information obtained at the presence information acquisition step; and
a notification step of, based on the apparatus identified at the identification step, transmitting identity of a location at which the user is present.
According to yet an additional aspect, the present invention, which achieves these objectives, relates to a computer-readable storage medium in which is stored a program for controlling a computer, the program comprising codes for permitting the computer to perform:
an interrupted process information acquisition step of acquiring information concerning a process that a user has interrupted at a different apparatus; and
a process resumption step of employing the information obtained at the interrupted process information acquisition step to resume the process that has been interrupted at the different information apparatus.
Other objectives and advantages in addition to those discussed above will become apparent to those skilled in the art during the course of the description of a preferred embodiment of the invention which follows. In the description, reference is made to accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof, and which illustrate an example of the invention. Such example, however, is not exhaustive of the various embodiments of the invention, and therefore, reference is made to the claims that follow the description for determining the scope of the invention.